Ray Wolfe

SeaPlane Operations, LLC

Contributor & Volunteer

Ray Wolfe; a Captain with Southwest Airlines, seaplane historian and SeaPlane Operations, LLC Member; has donated his time to pilot the Haiti Albatross Relief Effort. His website, www.HU-16.com, is the repository for the historic records of the Grumman Albatross and is universally recognized as the authoritative source for information about this unique aircraft. He is an experienced over-water ferry pilot, has participated in expeditions to successfully recover disabled Albatrosses and was gifted his Albatross flight training and rating flights by a grateful Albatross Community.

Bill & Gina DaSilva

Contributors & Volunteers

The DaSilva family has donated the use of their Albatross for these relief efforts. Bill, a Captain with Delta Airlines, and his wife Gina, a speech pathologist and educator, have spent many hours piloting the Albatross to some of the most exotic places on the planet–including several trips north of the Arctic Circle, to Alaska, and Europe across the North Atlantic.

Paul & Lynda LeVeque

Contributors & Volunteers

Paul is a Captain with the San Rafael, CA, Fire Department, long-time Albatross mechanic, restorer and pilot. Paul has restored some of the most significant Albatrosses still flying, including the Red Bull Albatross and Dr. Richard Sugden’s N3HU.  Paul also instructs USAF and US Navy Test Pilot School Students in Albatross flying. Lynda LeVeque, Ground and In-Flight Logistics Coordinator, recently retired as the Code Enforcement Manager for the City of San Rafael. Lynda always made sure the crew was fed, housed and transported while also documenting the Albatross Haiti Relief Mission.  Paul and Lynda are long-time residents of Santa Rosa, CA.

Chuck Kimes

SeaPlane Operations, LLC

Contributor & Volunteer

Chuck Kimes is a Captain with American Airlines, a seaplane pilot since 1974, and an experienced Albatross instructor. Chuck founded SeaPlane Operations, LLC with Ray Wolfe to bring professional, airline-standard training to the Grumman Albatross Community. Chuck has guest-instructed for the USAF, the US Navy, and National Test Pilot Schools since 2002.

Ryan McCown

Webmaster, Contributor, and Volunteer

Ryan is our volunteer-webmaster and a contributor to the Albatross Haiti Relief Mission. Ryan, an ATP pilot and flight instructor–both multiengine land and sea, has acquired multiple type ratings in business jets and is currently flying a Falcon 2000 based in the Bay Area, CA. Ryan has a B.S. in Aviation Operations from San Jose State University and is pursuing a Master Degree in aviation through Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. 

Randy Wilhite is an experienced seaplane pilot, Delta Airlines Captain, and long-time friend of Bill and Gina DaSilva.  He is an accomplished mechanic and has accompanied the DaSilvas in their flights north of the Arctic Circle. Randy provided important ground and in-flight support for the Haiti Relief Mission–flying on two of the missions. His great sense of humor provided much needed comic relief during the stressful hours of the support flights.

Joe Duke

Contributor & Volunteer

Joe Duke is a businessman from the Jacksonville, FL area and the owner of an Albatross that is in the final stages of an extensive restoration. Type-Rated in the Albatross, Joe served as a flight crewmember throughout the Haiti relief operations. Joe and his family contributed directly to the fundraising efforts, as well as, soliciting funds to help defray the costs of this volunteer mission.